Marine Animals

Marine Protected Area Animal Welfare

Marine protected areas benefit the welfare of marine animals by reducing fishing pressure, protecting habitat, and allowing population recovery.

Key Facts

Highly protected marine reserves show significant increases in fish biomass and diversity
Marine protected areas can increase fish size and abundance by 20-600%
Large MPAs protect the full range of migratory species
Only approximately 3% of the ocean has full protection from fishing

Welfare Considerations

Marine protected areas improve welfare for marine animals by reducing fishing mortality, allowing natural behaviors, and enabling recovery of depleted populations. Well-enforced MPAs create refuges where marine animals live without the constant threat of capture. Expanding well-enforced MPAs is one of the most impactful interventions available for ocean animal welfare.

What You Can Do

Support expansion of highly protected marine areas
Advocate for strong enforcement of existing marine protected areas
Support ocean conservation organizations working on MPA expansion
Choose seafood certified from well-managed fisheries outside protected areas